44: The Obama Presidency

Tuesday, February 10, 2009

Congress struggles to weed out the weaker parts of the stimulus bill.

PRESIDENT OBAMA was back on the hustings Monday, promoting an $800 billion-plus stimulus package at a town meeting in economically distressed Elkhart, Ind. "It is the right size, it is the right scope," Mr. Obama said. Of course, it is still not entirely clear what "it" is. The House has produced an... Sign in to see full entry.

Monday, February 9, 2009

North Korea is calling, Mr. President.

IT HASN'T been easy for foreign governments to command the attention of the Obama administration in its opening days, but North Korea is doing its best. Last week, the secretive Stalinist regime was spotted transporting what looked like a Taepodong-2 missile toward a launch site. In theory, the... Sign in to see full entry.

Wednesday, February 4, 2009

Why Daschle left.

Tom Daschle and his team went to bed the other night believing they had had a good day after a horrible weekend. Monday's Senate Finance Committee meeting was not easy. (Ranking Republican Chuck Grassley pushed Daschle hard on his relationship with Leo Hindery and his paid work on healthcare... Sign in to see full entry.

Tuesday, February 3, 2009

Direction of the GOP

There's a debate going on in some Republican circles over which groups of the electorate the party should target. This debate starts off with some uncomfortable realizations. One is that while John McCain's 46 percent share of the vote is not as dismal as some losing candidates of the past, it is... Sign in to see full entry.

Monday, February 2, 2009

Obama's 10 Best Moves and 5 Worst Stumbles So Far

Barack Obama has on balance had a very strong and mostly successful debut as president. In fact, he is currently polling better than leprechauns and unicorns. Really, you can look it up. It’s been part substance, part style. From my admittedly skewed perch, a top ten list of reasons why Obama is off... Sign in to see full entry.

Wednesday, January 28, 2009

Republicans get ready for an Obamanomics meltdown.

President Obama's $825 billion (and counting) "stimulus" is steamrolling through Congress. One group of conservative Republicans is betting that it will only worsen the country's economic plight. That's where the House Republican Study Committee comes in. "No Trillion Dollar Spending Spree" is the... Sign in to see full entry.

Monday, January 26, 2009

Week One

PRESIDENT OBAMA'S executive orders in his first week of office went beyond setting the right tone. From access to government records to family planning to interrogation methods, Mr. Obama rewrote policy in substantive, positive ways. He also -- this is not a criticism -- put off many difficult... Sign in to see full entry.

Friday, January 23, 2009

War Planning

THE WELCOME tone of pragmatism that President Obama conveyed during his transition and in his inaugural address seemed to carry over, during his first day in office, to one of the issues for which he will most need it: Iraq. Fulfilling an oft-stated campaign promise, the new president met with his... Sign in to see full entry.

Tuesday, January 20, 2009

PRESIDENT OBAMA

THE DAWN of a new presidency is always a time of awe and anxiety. The awe comes in bearing witness to the peaceful transfer of power as a new chapter of national history unfolds. The anxiety speaks to an untested new leader and the challenges he will face. The swearing-in today of the nation's 44th... Sign in to see full entry.

Wednesday, January 14, 2009

The new administration needs room to maneuver.

HAS THERE ever been a less lovable governmental entity than the Treasury Department's Troubled Assets Relief Program? Conceived amid an election-season crisis, priced at a gargantuan $700 billion, and reluctantly approved by Congress, the inelegantly-named financial bailout plan has been struggling... Sign in to see full entry.